The present invention pertains to rotary buffing pads adapted particularly for use with a power buffer and, more particularly, to a cushioned backing plate assembly for demountable attachment and support of two curved-edge buffing pads.
Rotary buffers are widely used in automotive body finishing and similar operations. Circular buffing pads are typically attached to a rigid circular backing plate which, in turn, is attached by a central hub to the shaft of a rotary power buffer. The buffing media used in buffing pads includes tufted natural wool or synthetic fibers and foam pads made of various synthetic foam materials. Buffing pads may be permanently attached to the backing plate or demountably attached thereto to facilitate replacement without disposal of the backing plate. It is also known to attach identical buffing pads to the opposite faces of a rigid backing plate, thereby allowing the pad assembly to be reversed after the operative face has been rendered unusable to present a fresh buffing face. Such a construction is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,990,124.
It is also known to provide easily demountable and replaceable buffing pads which are attached to the backing plate with a fastening system requiring no tools. A most popular fastening system is a hook and loop fastener, one common type of which is sold under the trademark VELCRO. Such a buffing pad assembly is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,123,139.
The use of hook and loop fastening systems for demountably attaching two buffing pad halves to the opposite faces of a rigid backing plate is also known, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,329. It is also known to provide rotary buffing pads with stiff annular backing members which provide the attachment interface with the backing plate and which backing members may also be provided with curved peripheral edges to which the buffing medium also conforms to provide a curved edge buffing pad. Such curved buffing pads may utilize either tufted fiber or foam buffing medium. A curved edge demountable pad is shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,313. This patent also discloses a composite backing plate which includes a layer of dense resiliently compressible foam material between the rigid backing plate and the buffing pad.
In both of the reversible double pad assemblies shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,990,124 and 5,249,329, the peripheral edge of the rigid backing plate is positioned directly adjacent the base of the buffing medium which, in the disclosed embodiments in both patents, comprises a conventional tufted fiber material, such as wool. In use, when it is desired to tilt the rotating buffing pad to utilize its peripheral edge for a buffing operation, there is a great likelihood that the application of too much pressure by the operator will result in damaging surface contact by the buffing pad backing material or the edge of the rigid backing plate. This, of course, is highly undesirable and, as a result, the operator must take great care when so using the buffer.